Transcript Chapter 16
Chapter 16 French Theatre • Alexandre Hardy – Rowdy audiences/plays • Paris became France’s theatre center • Medieval staging conventions (simultaneous, emblematic) except for environmental • Italian influence on France because they were “related” • Le Cid (Corneille)-earned acclaim for following neoclassical conventions but was criticized for the ones it strayed from • Italianate theatre comes to Paris. • Tennis court (public) theatre needed to adapt or die • King Louis XIV- “The Sun King” – His approval/ego helped benefit theatres – National self-display – Theatres received royal subsidy and patronage – Still performed for the public – Audience—demanding and sophisticated – Replaced Italy’s as the model for Europe Two Emerging Playwrights • Racine-trained in the classics produced the ultimate Neoclassical play: Phedre (Phaedra) • France accomplished producing lasting, popular drama (something England had not) • Moliere- actor-dramatist, great comic writer, Roman, Italian and French farce influenced him • The Imaginary Invalid • Denied last rites; King Louis had to intervene Theatre Companies • • • • • 5 companies Sharing companies Had women No householders 3 troupes after Moliere's death – Comedia Francaise-comedies and tragedies – Italian troupe-operas – Lully’s company-entertainment and spectacle Sentimentalism • King Louis XIV influenced this • Each individual is basically good • Neoclassicism said life was a struggle between good and evil • Sentimentalism implied that people were “perfectible” Changes in Production • Costumes—still contemporary rather than historical • “Prettified” • Vanishing point moved from center to side (angle perspective) • Allowed actors to work closer to the scenery and allowed more “perfect” seats for the audience; more than one “truth” Changes in Performance Practice • Lines of business-rigid rules about roles – “walking” lady or gentle men (3rd line) – Specialist in low comedy or “stage eccentric” (2nd line) – Hero or heroine (1st line) • Actors declared specialty and remained in that for their careers • Utility players-new actors (male and female) gained experience by playing many roles • Possession of parts- agreement that the actor would keep his or her role in the company as long as he or she remained in the company • Acting style: Vocal power and versatility • Those not in the Comedie Francaise were part of the “illegitimate” theatre not sanctioned by the government; commercial; attracted paying crowd with spectacle English Restoration Theatre • When theatre reopened in 1660 some 50+ years after it closed, it modeled French theatre • French traits – – – – Women actors Conventions of Italianate staging Newly designed theatres French-inspired producing arrangements—King approved monopoly patents • Very similar to French theatre Restoration Drama • Comedies of manners – Reflected the artificial, mannered, and aristocratic society of the day – Influenced by the life in Louis XIV’s court • Audiences were small • Sentimentalism-conservative shift – 1730s heroes and heroines embodied middle-class values – Sentimental comedy dominated English comedy, breaking from Neoclassicism • Serious plays-domestic tragedy • Minor forms: opera, pantomimes and afterpieces • English Theatre in America – William and Lewis Hallam established troupe and performed in Virginia in 1752, opening with Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice